<SNIP>

OOOhh, CN, I just KNEW you were going to take that shot  ;-)

But other than the obvious  cheap shot, I agree with you... Major behavioral
changes are often (but not always) a sign of illness. Better safe than
sorry, get that kitty to the vet! & Please keep us posted.

Mathew
Butler to 2 kittens: Chablis & Muscat
En Vino Veritas

She has a scratch on the back of her leg, a little scrape with some
fur gone.  I had not noticed it until today and it looks like it is
well on the way to healing, but she is such a big baby that it could
be related to her new habit of staying inside and sleeping if it is
sore at all.  I was going to take her to the vet just to be cautious,
but after watching her getting pretty rough with a stuffed animal toy
and running back and forth through the house a few times this morning
and late this evening, I was less concerned about her.  I was already
planning to take her to get her shots on Friday since I am not working
and so as long as I see nothing else unusual in her behavior between
now and then, I will wait until then and tell the vet about how she
has been acting different.

I am a little extra paranoid with this cat anyway, back in 2002 when I
first got her (yeah, I said she was 2 years old, I meant 3), I was
posting here about her rectal prolapse problems.  She is a manx and it
took forever to get rid of that problem. I thought for the longest
time that she would end up dying on me, but finally when she was
"fixed" they also stiched her up internally to keep the rectum from
coming back out.  

She did have one occasion with the rectum popping back out partially.
The vet kept her over a weekend and then she was okay.  No butt
problems since then.  But anytime she acts a little different I become
concerned about her.  Actually despite being more or less convinced
that there is nothing wrong with her, I would still have taken her to
the vet if I would not have been forced to miss half a day of work in
order to take off to do it.  

I have three cats, all three were born in a barn on a property that my
mother owns.  I would actually keep two of my cats in all the time if
it was entirely up to me, but the third one is a terror in the house
because he is about as dainty as a cocker spaniel on crack.  I might
be able to keep him out of certain parts of the house if it ever came
to that, but I would have to change a lot before it would be safe for
him to be in much.  

It was agreed upon that the kitty I am posting about would get to stay
inside at night because of the problems she has had and also because
she roams if she is allowed out after dark.  The other two cats can
always be found in the enclosed porch at night and during the day they
are either in my bamboo grove, behind some shrubs against the house
(in a large fenced in yard) or laying on the concrete patio in the sun
with the dog.

Little update - I took my dog and this cat to the vet today for the
annual shots and I mentioned the kitty behaving oddly.  The vet found
nothing wrong with her but gave her a shot of antibiotics anyway,
mostly because after her problems in the past he thought it was wise
to err on the side of caution.  If her behavior changes more or she
shows any signs of illness he said to bring her back but for now she
seems fine.  Maybe she has just grown tired of playing outside.  I
certainly do not care if that is the case, it is easier to leave her
inside than to go looking behind shrubs and in my bamboo to bring her
inside for the night or when I am leaving.